Labour strongholds raked in almost twice as much in health, education and environment grants - which critics argue should be paid for out of general taxation.

Overall, Tory seats should have received an extra £2.2billion between 1995 and 2007 to match levels in Labour areas, according to a detailed study by the Conservative party.

Opposition MPs have accused the Government of 'grand larceny' on the lottery by changing the rules on how money is handed out.

They say cash has been stripped from areas like sport for youngsters and heritage projects and diverted to helping 'disadvantaged' groups.

A founding principle of the National Lottery, established by Tory premier John Major in 1994, was that it would be additional to taxpayer funding and not replace it.

But since Labour came to power lottery money has been used as a substitute for government spending on projects including fruit in schools, hospital scanners and other medical equipment and teacher training.

The new research examined every grant made in 628 British constituencies over the last 12 years. While some Labour seats have worse

poverty and deprivation, the Tories say the extraordinary correlation found by the study suggests systematic bias.

Analysis of grants for health, education or environmental projects show the average Labour constituency received £5,234,310 and the average Tory seat £2,673,483 - just 51 per cent of the Labour figure. Of the 50 best-funded constituencies, 34 have Labour MPs and just four Tories.

Almost half the Labour MPs are present or former members of the Government, including Labour chairman Hazel Blears, International Development Secretary Hilary Benn and Trade Secretary Alistair Darling.

Last month, it emerged that five of the 12 members of the Big Lottery Fund - the biggest distributor of cash - are Labour backers, although it denies any bias.

Tory spokesman Hugo Swire said: 'The Government's changes to the lottery have allowed millions to be diverted to Labour heartlandsdenying many charities and good causes muchneeded funding. Only last week, we learned that Gordon Brown intends to plunder the lottery yet again to pay the spiralling costs of the Olympics.

'The Conservatives are committed to taking politics out of the lottery by returning it to supporting charities, heritage, the arts and sport.'

There have been scores of bizarre grants, including funding to take truant schoolchildren motorcycling and fishing, money for a clown to explore 'clowning in the modern world', and for a Huddersfield teacher to learn to be a sorcerer's apprentice.

Yet apparently deserving causes such as the Samaritans and a lifeboat station have been turned down.

The Big Lottery Fund was heavily criticised last year for refusing to fund a memorial honouring 16,000 servicemen and women killed since the end of the Second World War.

Following a Daily Mail campaign, the Lottery Millennium Commission agreed to give £2.8million to the project.

A spokesman for the Big Lottery Fund said: 'We assess projects on their own merit and the Labour Party doesn't have any say.

'Deprived and disadvantaged communities would be favoured, but at no point is the party representing any constituency taken into consideration.'